Student Admissions, Outcomes and Other Data
Note. The following information is provided in compliance with C-20 Disclosure of Education/Training Outcomes and Information Allowing for Informed Decision-Making to Prospective Doctoral Students. Domain G of the Guidelines and Principles for Accreditation of Programs in Professional Psychology requires that doctoral graduate programs provide potential students, current students, and the public with accurate information on the program and with program expectations.
Program Philosophy and Objectives
The Ph.D. program in School Psychology at Texas A&M University prepares its graduates for careers as scientist-practitioners, following the traditional "Boulder Conference" model of education and training. The program subscribes to a School Psychology training emphasis that promotes an integrated and coordinated service delivery model intended to improve the outcomes of children, youth and families. As a training program in school psychology, the program endeavors to train psychologists capable of contributing to the health care of children and adolescents, from perspectives of prevention and intervention, related to mental, academic, emotional, and behavioral difficulties, especially as related to schools and the educational process, at the individual and organization level. Taking a systems approach, the program emphasizes and promotes diversity issues related to the practice of psychology. The two overarching goals of the training program reflect the dual emphasis on research and practice:
- Students will demonstrate an understanding of professional issues, including ethical, legal, diversity, communication, and quality assurance principles necessary for professional competencies
- Students will demonstrate scientific knowledge and methods relevant to the practice and science of psychology within the contextual framework that science and practice are interconnected
Admissions and Graduation Requirements
We use a multi-component system for evaluating students. In addition to GRE, undergraduate (and graduate, if applicable) GPA is (are) considered as evidence of student academic success. Although not used as a single criterion of potential, GRE scores are considered as part of the admissions process, and it is recommended that students who do not obtain GRE scores (V + Q) of at least 1000 retake the test to strengthen their application. Additional criteria that are considered include letters of recommendation, membership in professional organizations, involvement in research activities, and relevant job experiences, as well as personal characteristics such as bilingual status or experience working with individuals with disabilities. The essay by the student indicating their goals and research interests is particularly helpful in trying to ensure a good fit between the students accepted and the faculty. Admission decisions are made only once each year, usually in January or February. At the current time, we do not require applicants to come to TAMU for an interview; interviews are conducted via SKYPE.
This is a full-time program, and particularly for the first two years, students attend year-round taking courses in Fall, Spring and Summer. All students entering post-baccalaureate are required to obtain the Masters in Education (M.Ed.) after completion of the first 37 credits in the program. Beyond the Masters (M.Ed. or other Masters held at entry), completion of the doctorate requires an additional 67 credits at a minimum. The 67 credits include up to 15 credits of field-based practicum/externship, 6 hours of internship, as well as 12 hours of research related to the dissertation. The internship is usually a full-time 12-month position, completed in concert with or prior to the doctoral dissertation defense. Pre-proposal, and proposal, as well as oral and written preliminary examinations, are completed prior to approval to apply for an internship. Students must have completed all requirements by dates set by the Office of Graduate Studies to graduate.
Student Characteristics
The School Psychology program at TAMU has a longstanding history of recruiting and retaining students from diverse backgrounds. As of the Fall 2010, 54 doctoral students were enrolled in the School Psychology program at varying levels of matriculation. Generally, each entering cohort includes 8 to 12 students. About one-third enter with a Masters degree in school psychology or a related field; two-thirds enter with a Bachelors degree. The majority of students come from psychology or education majors. Approximately 39% of the students in the program speak at least one language other than English; most frequently, this is Spanish. The majority of the students are female. Efforts are made to recruit nationally, and increasingly, more students outside of Texas are enrolled. Notably, of the graduates for the past 7 years, 54% were white, non-Hispanic, 15% were African American, 24% were Hispanic/Latino, and 7% were Asian or Pacific Islander.
Core Faculty: Associated Faculty:
Jamilia J. Blake, Ph.D. (U. of Georgia) Michael J. Ash, Ph.D., Emeritus Faculty (Arizona State U)
Nathan Clemens, Ph.D. (Lehigh University) Constance J Fournier, Ph.D., Special Education (U. Texas)
Jorge E. Gonzalez, Ph.D. (U. Nebraska-Lincoln) Jeffrey Liew, Ph.D., Learning Sciences (Arizona State U)
Jan N. Hughes, Ph.D. (U. Texas) Cecil R. Reynolds, Ph.D., Emeritus Faculty (U. of Georgia)
Anita Sohn McCormick (Texas A&M University)
William A. Rae (U. Texas)
Cynthia A. Riccio (U of Georgia)
Program Costs
For students entering the program during the 2010-2011 academic year, in-state tuition costs were $226.55 per credit hour; out-of-state tuition costs were $539.55 per credit hour. Most students take an average of 12 credits per semester. In addition to tuition, students also pay additional fees each semester; these vary, but students can expect to pay an additional $500/year in fees on average. There is also a $105 per credit fee for each course as well as Instructional Enhancement/Lab fees (ranging from $75-225 per course). Any distance/on-line courses taken while the student is enrolled in absentia will have additional fees attached. The estimated cost from the Financial Aid Office of a new (in-state) student, including tuition, fees, books, supplies, transportation, on-campus room and board as of Fall 2010 was $22,000 per year; for non-resident (out-of-state) and international students, the estimate was $28,500.
Texas A&M University and the department offer a variety of financial assistance for their admitted graduate students. This assistance includes in-state status for tuition charges for students holding assistantships or fellowships, tuition remission for students holding 20 hour assistantships, graduate assistantships in academic areas that are funded by departmental monies as well as grant monies, and fellowships that are awarded by the University. In addition, for the past 20+ years, the SPSY program has had a Personnel Preparation/Development Grant through the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) to train bilingual (Spanish-speaking) school psychologists with an emphasis on special education and English-language learners.
Internships
The School Psychology Program strongly encourages students to pursue APA-accredited or APPIC member internship placements. Data for the past seven years by year of application are as follows:
|
Notification in February of…
|
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
2008 |
2009 |
2010 |
2011 |
|
Sought/Applied for Internship |
5 |
5 |
11 |
6 |
12 |
11 |
9 |
|
Had applied the previous year |
na |
na |
na |
na |
1 (8.3%) |
1 (9.1%) |
2 (22.2%) |
|
Obtained Internships |
5 (100%) |
5 (100%) |
11 (100%) |
5 (83.3%) |
11 (91.6%) |
9 (81.8%) |
8 (88.9%) |
|
Obtained Paid Internships |
5 (100%) |
5 (100%) |
11 (100%) |
5 (83.3%) |
11 (91.6%) |
9 (81.8%) |
8 (88.9%) |
|
Obtained APA/CPA Accredited Internships |
5 (100%) |
5 (100%) |
9 (81.8%) |
5 (83.3%) |
8 (66.7%) |
9 (81.8%) |
7 (77.8%) |
|
Obtained APPIC Member Internships |
na |
na |
na |
na |
1 (8.3%) |
na |
1 (11.11%) |
|
Obtained Internships Conforming to CDSPP Guidelines |
na |
na |
2 (18.2) |
na |
2 (16.4%) |
na |
na |
|
Obtained two year half-time Internships |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Attrition
A total of 66 students have matriculated in the program since the Fall of 2004. Of these students, 5 left the program prior to completion of the program for an attrition rate of 7.14%. Attrition information is often interpreted as “failure to complete the program”, however in some instances, students who matriculated into the School Psychology Doctoral Program chose to leave the program and obtain a degree in a related field (e.g., Educational Psychology) or left due to medical or family issues.
|
Year of Initial Enrollment (Fall) |
Number of Students Enrolled |
Number and Percentage who Graduated with Doctorate |
Number and Percentage Still Enrolled |
Number and Percentage No Longer Enrolled for a Reason Other than Graduation (Ph.D.) |
|
2004 |
7 |
6 (85.7%) |
1 (14.3%) |
- |
|
2005 |
13 |
10 (76.9%) |
- |
3 (23.1%) |
|
2006 |
11 |
5 (45.5%) |
6 (54.5%) |
- |
|
2007 |
8 |
- |
8 (100%) |
- |
|
2008 |
11 |
- |
11 (100) |
|
|
2009 |
9 |
- |
7 (77.8) |
2 (22.2%) |
|
2010 |
10 |
- |
10 (100%) |
- |
Licensure
Programs are required to report the number and percentage of program graduates who have become licensed psychologists within the preceding decade. Of those students who graduated between 2001 and 2009 (n=68), 35 (51.5%) have pursued and obtained licensure as a psychologist; 3 other graduates for that time period have passed the EPPP and are provisionally licensed. In many instances, graduates indicate that they do not pursue licensure as a psychologist as it is not required for employment in public school settings; it is also not always required in academic settings. For the same time period, 62 (93.9%) have obtained the credential required for practice in school settings.
Graduate Outcomes
Over the course of the program’s history, graduates have gone into academic positions, medical or clinical settings including private practice, correctional settings, or school/educational settings. For the graduates over the past seven years (n=59) their current primary settings, including post-doctoral positions for recent graduates are as follows:
|
Position |
Number |
Percent |
|
Academic Position |
6 |
10.2% |
|
School/Education Related Setting |
31 |
52.5% |
|
Medical/Clinical Setting/State Agency |
19 |
31.2% |
|
Homemaker/Not employed |
3 |
5.1% |
Additional information can be obtained by contacting:
Kristie Stramaski, Academic Advisor 979 845-1831 kstramaski@tamu.edu
Cyndi Riccio, Director of Training 979 862-4906 criccio@tamu.edu
Website: spsy.tamu.edu
The School Psychology program at Texas A&M University is fully accredited by the
American
Psychological Association (APA)
Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation
750 First Street, N.E.
Washington, DC 20002-4242
(202) 336-5979
In addition, the program is
approved by the
National Association of School Psychologists (NASP)
